A total of 15,174 pupils were in the exceptional status group as of October 1st this year, representing around 13 percent of all students, according to education figures.
That's a 17 percent drop from the previous year – and represents the lowest level of children struggling with German language skills since the 2021/22 school year.
Pupils starting school and, less commonly, those joining from other educational backgrounds can be granted 'exceptional status' for up to two years if they are assessed as being unable to follow lessons properly without additional German-language support.
The evaluation is based on a controversial placement test called the MIKA-D, which determines whether children in Austria need additional support to develop their German skills.
READ ALSO: Does Austria's German test for schoolchildren do more harm than good?
Which school groups are typically struggling with German?
By far the largest number of pupils with significant German language needs are in primary school or Volksschule. Across all four years, those with German language difficulties currently account for 18 percent of primary school pupils, with most in the first grades.
In the previous school year, around 21 percent of primary school pupils had exceptional status. Among children starting school, however, the figure was almost half.
Compared with the 2025/26 school year, the latest figures show that the number of primary school pupils with exceptional status has fallen by 14 percent.
At lower secondary or middle schools (Mittelschulen), the decline was 37 percent, while at polytechnic schools it was 42 percent.
READ ALSO: Why Austria's school language statistics can be misleading
German language support measures
Vienna's education councillor Bettina Emmerling, of the liberal NEOS party, said the figures showed that things were moving in the right direction.
Schools and teachers were being relieved of some of the pressure, particularly through the halt to family reunification for recognised refugees and "consistent German-language support", she said in a statement to the Austrian Press Agency (APA).
READ ALSO: Does Austria limit family reunification for foreign residents?
The decline in primary schools is particularly important, she said, because children who can follow lessons from the outset are well placed to make a strong start on their educational path.
Emmerling praised Vienna's free summer German courses for children starting school who need language support, as well as nationwide measures introduced under NEOS Education Minister Christoph Wiederkehr.
These include compulsory summer school for children who need more specialised German-language support, the removal of the cap on German-language support staff and additional staff for schools facing challenging conditions through the Chancenbonus (Opportunities Bonus) programme.
Austria's federal government, a coalition between the centre-right ÖVP, the centre-left SPÖ and NEOS, has put a strong emphasis on integration measures and improving German language among the population.
Emmerling said that for the situation to further improve, there must now be a "fair distribution of the burden of integration across all federal states".
READ ALSO: What foreign residents in Austria should know about planned 'integration map'
Comments